RIB Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Ross In Bloom (RIB)?
- How can I help?
- How can I join in?
- How do I contact you?
- How do I enter the floral competitions?
- I work for a company in Ross. Can we enter the competition?
- Do you have any specific colour schemes that I should stick to when planting my flowers?
- What hints can you give me for planting that might help me?
- Where can I get gardening advice?
- How do you get funding to do what you do for the town?
What is Ross In Bloom (RIB)?
Ross In Bloom is a non-profit
making group of volunteers, seeking to make our lovely old market town a
prettier place for everyone -residents, the business community and visitors
alike.
How Can I Help?
We have need of all ages, all
abilities and many skills (not just gardeners!). As we are mainly self
supporting, we always need fundraisers and your unwanted items to use as prizes
in raffles etc. Plants, bulbs etc. donated to us are planted in public areas to
enhance local parks etc.
How can I join in?
- Actually, you don't need to "join" RIB and there is no membership fee.
- We welcome all sorts of voluntary assistance and are always in need of volunteers.
-
Why not contact us to find out more?
How do I contact you?
Check on the
Home page for all
our contact details. We are a group of volunteers, but any questions that you
wish to ask will be answered by a Committee member as
quickly as we can.
How do I enter the floral competitions?
Any
garden within the town that is clearly visible from
the pavement is automatically entered. We are sorry but no garden that requires
the judges to enter or cross private property can be entered into the
competition, due to the Law governing trespassing. If you wish to check that
your street is covered on the judging route, then please contact us.
I work for a company in Ross. Can we enter the competition?
Yes. There are all sorts of
categories open for businesses. Please contact us on from the link on the
Home page to find out more.
Do you have any specific colour schemes that I should stick to when planting my flowers?
The choice of colours in your garden is your own, but we are giving a maximum of 5 extra marks to those competitors who, in the opinion of the judges, have entered into the spirit of the Britain In Bloom Competition.
This year's
colour scheme for the town will be all the shades of pink
and yellow.
What hints can you give me for planting that might help me?
Judges are looking for a well planned, well maintained garden with no weeds!! This applies to most entries so the winners all have the 'WOW!' factor which is a difficult thing to describe but involves colour use, style, and good use of the space available. Tasteful garden ornaments, well thought out beds plus creative use of plants all combine to make a good visual impact.
We also award marks for conservation - bird tables / feeders, recycling of garden waste, water butts etc......
Where can I get gardening advice?
We can answer some of your questions on plants and colours, though obviously we are not able to advise you on how to design your garden to win!!!
There are a number of gardening message boards, live chatrooms and helpful gardening websites on our Gardening Links page which may also be of help, and don't forget the local library!!
How do you get funding to do what you do for the town?
Our funding comes from personal donations and companies sponsoring the projects that we do, and as one of the founder members of Herefordshire In Bloom we receive a percentage of the grant money paid to this group by Herefordshire Council.
We also hold raffle's, coffee mornings and table sales to generate extra money needed each and every year.
We get little or no funding from the town council, and unlike other towns like Ledbury, there is no money from the council tax [poll tax as it was] to help us out either.
Our accounts are available for all to see at the RIB AGM, which is held in early November every year.